More on that later. But first, let it be said that eagles are quite capable of taking a small dog or a cat.

"It has been documented before, but not that often," said Laurie Goodrich, a biologist at nearby Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, a ridgetop preserve that annually records tens of thousands of migrating hawks, eagles and falcons.

"Food is scarce right now, particularly with this cold snap," she said. "The waterways are freezing up. They're going to be looking a little more widely and taking advantage of whatever might be out there."

Rodriguez said he was by himself at his sister's home in Bowmanstown, about 80 miles north of Philadelphia, when he heard a loud screech, hurried to the French doors leading to the deck and saw the eagle with its talons in Zoey, who had been playing in the fenced yard.

"The bird was holding onto the dog. There was flapping of wings and then it was gone," said Rodriguez, a 50-year-old healthcare executive visiting from Chicago.

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He drove around the neighborhood looking for the 7-year-old Bichon, to no avail. Rodriguez assumed Zoey was gone for good.

Newhard said it wasn't unusual to see eagles in the area, given her home's proximity to the river. She also suspected they occasionally grabbed one of the rabbits that lived under her shed. But it didn't occur to Newhard that any of her four dogs would be in danger.

Heartbroken, she and her husband scoured the woods for Zoey's body. Little did they know their bitty Bichon would be found later that afternoon — a full four miles away.

Zoey's rescuer was Christina Hartman, 51, who said she was driving on a snow-covered back road when she spotted a furry white lump ahead and pulled over to investigate.

She scooped up the whimpering pooch, wrapped her in a blanket and took her home, feeding the dog two bowls of chicken-and-rice soup. Gradually, the Bichon warmed up and began to show some spunk. Hartman noticed several small wounds on the back of her neck, and the dog walked with a limp. She had no collar.